


Midnight Donuts

by calenlily



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: Building trust and vulnerability, Developing Relationship, F/F, Season/Series 03
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:08:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26726422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/calenlily/pseuds/calenlily
Summary: “Wanna go for donuts?” Buffy asks as they wrap up the night’s patrol.Slayer bonding through late-night snacks and shared confidences. Sequel toPartying for Slayers.
Relationships: Faith Lehane/Buffy Summers
Comments: 3
Kudos: 49





	Midnight Donuts

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Melacka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Melacka/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Partying for Slayers](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23278639) by [calenlily](https://archiveofourown.org/users/calenlily/pseuds/calenlily). 



> I started this for the Flash In The Pan exchange back in April; hopefully you’re still in the market for a very late treat.

“Wanna go for donuts?” Buffy asks as they wrap up the night’s patrol.

It’s been four days since Homecoming, and she and Faith have patrolled together every night, and made out twice more. She’s still not sure what the hell it is they’re doing, but she thinks she likes it.

“What?” Her sister slayer shoots her a look like she can’t believe she’s for real.

“Happy Donuts on Mercer is open 24 hours. Just cause I wasn’t willing to say it in front of Will and Xand doesn’t mean you’re wrong about the hungry and horny thing. You wanna go or not?”

Faith’s disbelieving look morphs into a slow delighted smile. “Hell yeah, you know I’m in.”

For all the brunette’s easy-breezy-fast living attitude, Buffy realizes she’s rarely seen her look so genuinely happy. She spends the walk to the donut shop wondering what she can do to put such an expression on the other girl’s face more often.

They find the store nearly deserted, and take their time making their selections.

“Do you wanna eat here?” Faith asks as they peruse the cases. “Or we could go back to mine. I mean, if you like.” There’s a sudden hesitance to her voice as if she expects the idea to be rejected out of hand.

“I’d like that, if you don’t mind having me,” Buffy agrees.

Laden down with a box of an assorted dozen and steaming paper cups of hot chocolate, the two Slayers walk the few blocks to Faith’s motel.

“I know it’s not much, but...” Faith unlocks the door and gestures Buffy inside.

Buffy smiles sympathetically. “I know how it goes. My place this summer wasn’t much different.”

Faith sprawls out on the bed without bothering to take her boots off, and breaks open the box of donuts. Buffy perches on the edge and reaches over to snag a cream-filled. They sit in companionable silence for a few minutes, too occupied in stuffing their faces for conversation.

Eventually Faith speaks up. “You said something the other day about your friends not trusting you; what’s that about? I don’t know what’s eating Will and Xander right now, but I can tell you mean the world to them.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt they love me. But they don’t trust me to make my decisions, and they’re so quick to get judgey. They all but threw me at Scott, and shutting me up with Cordy on the way to Homecoming was the _second_ intervention thing they’ve pulled on me this month. You missed the big drama, when I came back from LA at the end of the summer they power-wigged.” Buffy grimaces. “There’s always been things about the Slayer gig that I can’t expect them to get, but I used to think I could count on them to stand by me whatever happened. These days I can’t tell if they’re even trying to understand. When everything went down this spring, I had the police and Snyder accusing me of killing Kendra and Mom told me if I left the house not to even think about coming back, and yet they rag on me for leaving town like Angel was the only reason I did it. Not that that wasn’t enough to deal with anyway; how was I supposed to think I could count on them for support when they sent me into the most wrenching fight of my life with ‘kick his ass’?”

“Sounds like a world of suck. So why’d you come back?” Faith says it almost absently, barely looking up from the hot chocolate she’s sipping, but Buffy is struck by the realization no one else has ever bothered to ask that question.

“Ran into some people who needed my help, took a little side trip to a hell dimension, and realized that I couldn’t turn my back on who I was,” Buffy replies, more casually than she feels. “What I was doing in LA wasn’t really me; it was barely even living.”

“Well, I think it was wicked brave of you. I can’t hardly imagine going back to Boston. You probably gathered that I split after Kakistos got my Watcher – ran all the way across the country and never once looked back.” Faith picks sprinkles off a bar and pops them into her mouth one by one. “...Of course, I didn’t exactly have friends or family to miss me. Without Diana, there wasn’t much left there to come back to.”

“Well, you’ve got a place here now,” Buffy says honestly. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“You’re just saying that because you don’t wanna be stuck with the Hellmouth on your own,” Faith teases.

“There is that,” Buffy agrees with a laugh.

They lapse into silence again for a minute. And then, before she can think better of it, Buffy blurts out, “He’s back. Angel is.” Apparently it’s a night for honesty.

“What do you mean he’s _back_?” I thought you killed him.”

“So did I.” Buffy shrugs helplessly. “I stuck a sword through him and fed him to a hell portal. Turns out that’s not actually fatal for for a vampire. And apparently the trip to hell wasn’t so one-way after all. Welcome to the freak show that is my life.”

“Never a dull moment round you, that’s for sure.”

“I thought I was finally ready to let go, to move on,” Buffy confesses. “And then I found him, and he was in real rough shape, he barely remembered his own name but he still knew mine. He’s getting better now. And I know we can’t be anything but I can’t just stop caring.” Belatedly it occurs to her to wonder if she should be saying any of this, that her kind-of-maybe-girlfriend is perhaps the last person she should be spilling her guts to about her ex-boyfriend drama. But on the other hand, Faith is probably the only person in her life who won’t be loaded down with preconceived notions about the situation, and keeping the secret is slowly eating her from the inside out. “I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t know how or why it happened. And I haven’t dared tell anyone ‘cause I can only imagine how they’re gonna wig.”

Faith just gapes at her for a moment. “Shit, B, you really _don’t_ know how to make anything not complicated,” she finally says.

The response is so unexpected that Buffy can’t help but laugh. “Thanks,” she retorts sarcastically. “I pour my heart out to you and that’s all you have to say?”

Faith shrugs. “I’m not so good at the whole feelings thing, you mighta noticed.”

And yet, despite that self-professed discomfort with overt emotion, she’d been willing to listen patiently and without judgment. So Buffy replies with a self-deprecating smile, “And I’m a little too good at the whole gut-wrenching angst thing, so hey, we’ve all got our flaws.”

“Good thing we’re pretty,” Faith says, prompting Buffy to toss her empty cup at her. “You and your gut-wrenching angst better not steal the last glazed.”

“Split it with you?”

Faith grins. “You got yourself a deal, girlfriend.” When Buffy holds the donut out to her, she leans in and tears off a chunk with her mouth, her tongue flicking out to lick the sugar from Buffy’s fingers.

Buffy stifles an undignified squeak, feeling the blush rising to her cheeks. Something is doing flips in the pit of her stomach, and the amused, knowing look her sister slayer is giving her only makes it worse.

And suddenly, despite the mixed-up mess that is her life, heartache and drama couldn’t be farther from Buffy’s mind.


End file.
